As national debate rages over drivers using their mobile at the wheel, The Gazette can reveal the number of people fined for the offence on Teesside.

New figures show that in 2015, there were 366 fixed penalties issued - a drop of nearly 200 since the year before.

And it is nearly five times less than the amount given out in 2010 - 1,713 - as police claim increased awareness and education is leading to less people breaking the law.

On Monday, a lorry driver who killed a mother and three children while distracted by his phone was jailed for 10 years.

Tomasz Kroker smashed into stationary traffic while scrolling through music selections on a main road in Berkshire.

Thames Valley Police released a hard-hitting video which showed footage of the horrific crash after the 30-year-old, of Andover in Hampshire but originally from Poland, was sentenced.

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And nationally, there has also been a fall in the number of fines handed out for the offence.

RAC road safety spokesman Pete Williams saying the figures were “a stark indication” that the declining number of dedicated roads policing officers was having a significant effect on the number of offences detected.

But after the figures for Cleveland were released, Chief Inspector Graham Milne said the force used “education and enforcement as tools” to keep roads safe.

Handout dashcam still issued by Thames Valley Police of Tomasz Kroker looking at his mobile phone

“On occasions using enforcement is warranted, but educational methods such as driver improvement schemes can make drivers think twice about their actions and help them make better decisions when driving. This is all about changing behaviours and improving standards of driving,” said Chief Insp Milne, who heads the shared Cleveland and Durham Specialist Operations Unit. The Durham force saw 463 fixed penalty notices handed out.

“We see so many examples of drivers’ poor judgement which have ended in people being killed and seriously injured and all approaches that we take to dealing with these offences are aimed at preventing similar incidents happening in future.

“As roads policing officers, none of us want to have to tell someone that their loved one has been killed in a preventable incident where someone has been using a mobile phone whilst driving.”

Currently motorists face three points and a £100 fine if caught using a mobile behind the wheel.

The Government has indicated it will increase that to six points and a £200 fine, while young motorists with less than two years on the road could be banned from driving after just one offence.